CONSTITUTION AND ADMINISTRATION
At December 31, the total strength of the Civil Service was 174 500 (excluding about 1 500 ICAC and judicial officers), with staff distributed among some 405 grades and
1 136 ranks.
Overall policy responsibility for the management of the Civil Service lies with the Civil Service Bureau of the Government Secretariat. It includes policies on matters such as appointments, pay and conditions of service, staff management, manpower planning, training and discipline. The bureau is also the focal point for consultation with major staff associations and its General Grades Office manages the 28 500 executive, clerical and secretarial staff. Management of the Civil Service is governed mainly by three important instruments: the Public Service (Administration) Order, the Public Service (Disciplinary) Regulation, and the Civil Service Regulation, all made with the authority of the Chief Executive.
The Public Service Commission is an independent statutory body set up in 1950 under the Public Service Commission Ordinance (Chapter 93 of the Laws of Hong Kong) to advise the Chief Executive on appointment, promotion and disciplinary matters in the Civil Service. The Government is also advised on matters relating to pay and conditions of service by four independent bodies, the Standing Committees on: Directorate Salaries and Conditions of Service (senior officers); Judicial Salaries and Conditions of Service (the judicial officers); and Disciplined Services Salaries and Conditions of Service (the disciplined services); plus the Standing Commission on Civil Service Salaries and Conditions of Service (all other civil servants).
In accordance with the Basic Law, Principal Officials must be Chinese citizens who are permanent residents of the HKSAR with no right of abode in any foreign country and have ordinarily resided in Hong Kong for a continuous period of not less than 15 years. It is also a Basic Law requirement that new recruits to the Civil Service on or after July 1, 1997, should normally be permanent residents of the HKSAR, save for certain exceptions, for example to fill professional and technical posts. The Government administers a long-established policy of localisation of the Civil Service, which gives preference in recruitment to candidates who are permanent residents of the HKSAR. Other candidates are considered when there is no fully qualified and suitable permanent resident candidate and where permissible under the Basic Law. Subject to the above policy, appointment to the Civil Service is based on open and fair competition which aims to recruit the 'best person for the job'. Promotion is performance-based and is not a reward for long service. As the largest employer in Hong Kong, the Government takes the lead in employing people with a disability to help them integrate into the community and ensure that they are given equal opportunity in recruitment to the Civil Service.
The Government monitors closely the turnover in the Civil Service for manpower planning purposes. Overall wastage of the Civil Service in 2000-2001 was 3.1 per cent. Given the importance of continuity at the management level, the Government has a well-established staff planning mechanism to review succession planning of senior staff and to identify and groom officers with potential for advancement to senior management, in order to develop a pool of talent for senior positions.
The Government values regular communication and consultation with staff. There are four consultative councils at the central level: the Senior Civil Service Council, the Model Scale 1 Staff Consultative Council, the Disciplined Services Consultative Council and the Police Force Council. More than 80 consultative committees operate
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